Assessing Progress
Toward Sustainability in Higher Education
AGENDA
6:00-9:00pm Opening event: Reception and buffet dinner, Jurys Washington Hotel
Goal for Friday: To review what has been achieved in making sustainability a major concern of higher education.
8:30am Coffee and Continental Breakfast (in conference room)
9:00am Introduction: Rick Clugston (University Leaders for a
Sustainable Future - ULSF) / Peter Blaze Corcoran (Florida Gulf Coast
University) – Goals and structure of the meeting. Your roles as consultants.
9:30am Plenary Session I: Perspectives on sustainability in higher
education (SHE). A review of various
approaches to sustainability in higher education, including general
declarations and specific institutional statements. How are various institutions and organizations framing the
central tasks of sustainable universities?
Moderator: Peter Corcoran
Panelists (10 minutes each):
Arjen E.J. Wals (Wageningen University) – "Sustainability in Higher Education: From Doublethink and Newspeak to Critical Thinking and Meaningful Learning" – Explores universal standards for integration of sustainability vs. divergent realities for using such standards, especially in fostering "transformation" education.
Tarah Wright (Dalhousie University) – "A Review of Definitions and Frameworks for Sustainability in Higher Education" – Looks at the various national and international declarations as well as individual institutional policies, identifying emerging themes, gaps and issues for more study.
Discussion
10:45am Break
11:00am Plenary Session II: A broad review of the methodology and results of campus environmental assessments in North America and Europe, and an analysis of existing campus assessment tools. What do these instruments tell us about what is essential to sustainability in higher education? How much do these instruments actually assess what sustainability is? How useful are they in helping institutions move toward sustainability?
Moderator: Julian Keniry (Campus Ecology)
Panelists (10 minutes each):
Harold Glasser (Western Michigan University) – "A Review of Campus Environmental Assessments (CEA)" – What assessments/audits have been conducted? What frameworks and "indicators" have been used? What can we learn from CEA efforts to date?
Niko Roorda (Brabant University for Professional Education) – "AISHE: A Method for the Assessment of Sustainability in Higher Education" – Philosophy and structure of the Auditing Instrument for Sustainability in Higher Education (AISHE), with strategic policy implications.
Michael Shriberg (University of Michigan) – "Cross-Institutional Assessment Tools for Sustainability in Higher Education: Strengths, Weaknesses and Implications for Practice and Theory"
Discussion
12:30pm Lunch
1:30pm Plenary Session III: A review of "case studies" and "best (and not so best) practices," and a consideration of factors for success and failure. This session continues on Saturday morning.
Moderator: Wynn Calder (ULSF)
Panelist (10 minutes):
John Glyphis (Second Nature) – Review of Second Nature’s approach to "best practices" and other related benchmarking concepts.
Discussion
2:00pm Case study panel focusing on the following question:
– Based on what we know about the various frameworks for defining a sustainable university (including general declarations, specific institutional statements and assessment tools), how successfully has your college or university institutionalized sustainability in research, teaching, operations and outreach?
Panelists (10 minutes each):
Nan Jenks-Jay – Middlebury College
Geoff Chase – Northern Arizona University
Chris Uhl – Penn State University
Andy Johnston – Higher Education Partnership Initiative (UK)
Discussion
4:00pm Free time; informal trips to the DC monuments, cherry blossoms (if in bloom),etc.
7:30pm Dinner: Tabard Inn
Saturday, March 31
Goal for Saturday: To continue to explore case studies and factors for success and failure; and discuss the research and advocacy agenda for SHE.
8:30am Coffee and Continental Breakfast (in conference room)
9:00am Plenary Session III continued:
Moderator: Tony Cortese (Second Nature)
Panelists (10 minutes each):
Mark Starik (George Washington University) – “Descriptions of Four Greening Universities Using an
Organizational Excellence Model”
Rick Bunch (World Resources Institute) – “Determinants in Moving Business Schools toward Sustainability” – Lessons from the Management Institute for Environment and Business (MEB) experience.
Trish Jerman (Sustainable Universities Initiative) – “Lessons from the South Carolina Sustainable Universities Initiative”
Discussion
10:15am Break
10:30am Three Working Groups:
Working Group I: What research and assessment tasks are essential to advance sustainability in higher education?
Working Group II: What are the criteria for good case study methodology?
Working Group III: What are the advocacy strategies for advancing sustainability in higher education?
12:30pm Lunch
1:30pm Reporting back from working groups
2:00pm Plenary Session IV: Next steps in researching and promoting sustainability in higher education, focused on these questions:
1. How can we strengthen and rapidly advance sustainability in higher education?
a. What research and assessment tasks are essential?
b. What education, public awareness and training tasks are essential – and which key stakeholders and constituencies should be involved?
2. How can we utilize the Rio+10 review process? Emerging networks (GHESP, HENSE)? Other opportunities to study SHE and motivate this change?
Moderator: Rick Clugston
Panelists (10 minutes each):
Kim Walker (Consultant)
Hans-Peter Winkelmann (CRE-Copernicus)
Sara Parkin (Forum for the Future)
Bob Ford (Southern University and A&M College)
Discussion – lead by Debra Rowe (Oakland Community College)
3:30pm Break
4:00pm Final Discussion
Wrap-Up
5:00pm Meeting adjourns